Recently released University of Toronto study results revealed more than half of motorists observed failed to make necessary scans for pedestrians or cyclists when attempting to make right turns.
Using eye-tracking equipment to accurately assess where drivers were looking when turning at an intersection, investigators said the work involved participants ranging in age from 35 to 54 with more than three years of driving experience.
The drivers were required to make right turns at locations where they were required to safely turn right across a dedicated cycling lane.
Researchers noted 11 of the 19 drivers failed to observe an area of importance, where cyclists or pedestrians would be located, before turning; all attentional failures were related to not making frequent over-the-shoulder checks for cyclists; attentional failures were more likely for those who drove more frequently in downtown Toronto; and it appeared drivers less familiar with an area were more cautious when turning.
“The results were surprising,” Birsen Donmez, a university professor and chair of Canada Research in Human Factors and Transportation, said. “We didn’t expect this level of attention failure, especially since we selected a group that are considered to be a low crash-risk age group. I think it’s an infrastructure issue. I don’t think it’s an education issue. When you look at the bike lanes in the city, the more unpredictable the road rules are, the more challenging it is.”
Officials noted during a summer yielding a string of vehicle-pedestrian and vehicle-cyclist accidents in the city, with 21 fatalities as of June, the study lends insight into a driver’s misallocation of attention when making turns on busy city streets.